Help? ... maybe.

I'm seriously ridiculous when I get on Instagram.

No joke.

I could just snap photos all day, of anything and everything.

I. just. can't. stop.

& it happens often on my days off!

Help me. Please?? ;)

1. Gotye. :) 2. My little sisters & I while talking to my brother & his family on Skype! 3. plaid, curly hair, and a whole lot of silliness. 4. Reading 5. Reading some more.... 6. Looking @ my old, woren out shoes that I love. 7. A trip with friends a couple weeks back, which consisted of coffee, shopping, and a movie!! & a bunch of laughs. :) 8. Writing w/ my nerdy glasses. 9. Lunch. 10. Good morning! 11. I finished the book!!! :D 12. Bored. 13. Plaid + glasses + curly hair. 14. My view while soaking up the sun!!

Well, that about covers the past couple weeks of my life, minus work.

Boring? Yes. 

Ah. This is what old age is bringing me. ;)

I don't mind, though.

Happy Wednesday, friends.

much love.

xoxo

PS. If you don't already follow me, you can find me on Instagram under: theplaidsparrow

Guest Post: These Happy Times

I am oh-so happy to not only share my very first guest post, but to introduce you to a lovely lady.

Britt is so sweet.
Srsly.

& she has the cutest, little family to boot!

She is someone I wish lived closer, so that I could sit and chat with her over coffee!
I know you'll feel the same.

& please take some time to check out her blog. :)

xoxo

Dust in our eyes.

Today Nathan & I had the day off of work. 

On top of that the girls had a three day weekend because of 'Good Friday'. 

I honestly wish that I were back in school just so that I could get random days off.

Wouldn't that be lovely?! ;)

(Though this particular "good friday" isn't just random, but I hope you know what I mean!!)

Anyways ... I realized more than ever today that I portray a very "motherly" personality. 

It's kind of insane. It makes me feel like I am "less fun" than others because I am constantly concerned with their well being. 

I have heard so many stories of people dying from four-wheeler wrecks. 

Nathan definitely loves riding four-wheelers and has a blast, which is GREAT!

I am just so worried that everyone is going to hurt themselves, so I am constantly aware of everything that could possibly go wrong. 

Ugh. I get annoyed with myself sometimes.

I wish I could just enjoy things and trust that everything will turn out fine. 

Plus, the dirt roads sent dust flying EVERYWHERE ... and into our eyes it went.

But all in all it was an adventure and without an adventure, life would be a little less interesting. ;)

Despite all of my worrisome ways, today was a really good. :)

These are the reasons why:

1. I got to sleep in ... and it was actually after 8am!! (Applause would be much appreciated at this time.)

2. I spent all afternoon with my boyfriend & sisters.

3. We all got to eat some mexican food.

4. All of us brought my mom home a sweet kitten. (PS. She started crying, you guys! Seriously. It was cray! She was beyond happy.)

5. I received a very LARGE Starbucks coffee bag from Nathan's mom for Easter! She knows the way to my heart. I was doubled over with happiness. :D

6. My family and Nathan spent the rest of our night watching 'Scream 3' because my sisters really wanted to see it. (which is NOT as scary as it was when I was in 8th grade all those years ago!!! **Also it has far too much cussing for me, I'm afraid.)

I hope you had a very "GOOD" Friday!

Easter is literally just around the corner. 

I look forward to hearing what wonderful things your weekend brings you all!

much love, friends.

xoxo

PS. Sorry for the low quality photos. I was working only with an iPhone and didn't do anything special to the photos this time. Plus, Nathan took a few ... so ... ;) jk. He did a great job. The trip really needed to be instagram-ed, but maybe next time!

Happenings.

Lately:

- I am trying to work towards my goal of losing 35 pounds. 

-In that process, I'm letting go of sweets ... slowly. :/

-Wishing there was more time in each day to do more of the things I love.

-So happy to have my brother, sister-in-law, and nephews back home. It has been wonderful having them here. :)

-Stressing over finances (same ole, same ole)

-Happy that I get to dress up for work this Saturday, but sad to have to miss church on Sunday!

-I watched 'Moneyball' & 'Reel Steel' this week. Very different movies. I enjoyed them both.

**PS. No matter how you feel about Brad Pitt, I still believe he is a phenomenal actor. & Jonah Hill's performance was awesome. 

-Working on my posture because I'm pretty sure I stay slumped over far too much.

-Dyed my hair all black. (It pretty much looks the same, though)

-After today, I wish I had bought rain boots. 

**I ALWAYS say that when it rains. Do I ever go buy any? Obviously not! :/

-Reminding myself to find the good in others, even when it isn't always evident. 

-Trying to read about 6 different books at the moment.

-Finding new & interesting sites + blogs this week. :)

-I miss watching Top Gear, the UK version, so bad!!

-Thinking we need a Chick-fil-a, then deciding on breakfast wouldn't be so hard!

-AND ... waiting patiently, but on the edge of my seat, for the release of 'The Hunger Games'! Aw. I'm beyond excited & praying that all the actors hold true to each character. So, of course, I had to leave you with the official music video for Safe & Sound by Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars!!!

Lovely, right?! :)

Its strange because I used to not be a huge Taylor Swift fan. I just didn't think she was that great of a singer. However, there is such a genuine quality about her that I can't help but like.

She has definitely grown on me.

I'm so happy she did this song and included some of my favorite people!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thursday. 

much love.

xoxo

Spring is just around the corner!

Today was pretty wonderful!
I had the day off work.
Which means I had some time to snap a few photos in the lovely weather we had!

Then, I soaked up the warm sun while I got to journal, read my bible, and walk around downtown with my momma.

I also remembered that my baby brother, his wife, and kiddos are coming up from Texas in just a few days! :) I love when they are home. My nephews are the cutest! *proud auntie*

And last, but certainly not least, I am sponsoring over on Casey Wiegand's blog this month.

Casey and her art.

She is so down to earth and the nicest gal.
It is a blessing to read about her art, her sweet family, her hopes/dreams/struggles, as well as see her faith in the Lord.
She has a new blog design up and it looks fantastic!
Please take a moment and check out her blog.
You will be glad you did!
Happy Thursday, friends. :)

The weekend flew by ... as always!

I was so grateful to have a the whole weekend off from work.
It is always nice, especially when you get to do a lot of fun stuff with people you adore. :)
Friday night I got to spend some time with Nathan & his family.
His mom always has the yummiest mashed potatoes ... and I may or may not eat ALL of them!!! ;)
Saturday morning, I was up bright and early.
Nathan's mom and sister picked me up for our ladies Spa day! :D

Please just let me say that I had a vision of what the trip would be like on the way up there.
I thought we would be laughing, them telling me stories about Nathan that he didn't want me to know, sharing our likes and dislikes ... and you get the picture.
Well, oh noooo ... that did NOT happen, folks.
We took back roads, curvy back roads, and I tend to get car sick. :/
Let's just say that most of my time was spent in the back seat with a terrible headache and trying hard not to pass out the whole time!!
Geez.

Then, we arrive at a hospital thinking it is where we are suppose to be.
We were so lost and confused by that point.
To top it off, I had to use the bathroom sooo bad.
Like when you have to pee to the extent that you may cry if you don't go .. yea, that kind! :/
AND! WE COULD NOT FIND A RESTROOM ANYWHERE!!
Once we found one, I would have jumped for joy if it weren't for the fact that I may have peed myself if I did!!

When we found the Spa, we were so happy!
It was the most relaxing afternoon I have had in awhile.
Manicures & massages! Aw!
Plus, the company I had made it ALL the better.
**If I haven't said it at this point, I kind of adore Nathan's mom and sister! A LOT!!! :D


Afterwards, we met up with Nathan, Holly, and Mason for dinner at Chili's!
I kind of filled myself up on chips and queso.
I do it every time and then regret it when my food arrives because I'm not as hungry.
When we were so full and thought our bellies would pop, we said goodbye to Holly & Mason, before heading over to the mall.
I got a lot of goodies while I was there.

Some of my favorite stores!

Spa pamplet, Starbucks Blonde coffee beans, owl journal, a love note written on a Chili's napkin, AE sweater (for 10 bucks!!), and a Reese's easter egg. :) 

So, Saturday was a pretty jam packed day full of greatness!

Then this morning Nathan & I went to church.

The worship & service was fantastic!! 

The rest of the day consisted of a two hour nap, relaxing on the couch, drinking coffee, looking at my rad turquoise shellac nails, checking blogs, & making up songs and dances moves to make my mom and sisters laugh hysterically! ;)

I hope your weekend was just as lovely!

much love.

PS. I have no idea why I didn't take one photo of any of us during the weekend. :( 
I'll have to make sure I snap a few on the next adventure!

Oh, happy day!

Today was filled with:

-Sleeping in (9am was pushing it for me!)

-cleaning

-beautiful weather

-much needed hair trim

-driving with the windows down & jamming to 80's rock music

-friend from HS had a 5lb 2oz baby girl!!

-coffee

-went with baby sister for her first set of contacts. woop, woop!

-ate some yummy pizza

-surprise visit from a good friend

-caught up on episodes of New Girl (I adore Zooey Deschanel)

-got to see my precious two year old nephew **see photo above

-laughing, talking, and being reminded how grateful I am for Nathan in my life

-and last, but certainly NOT least:

My new blog design!! :)

I am over the moon with how it turned out!

Don did an amazing job. 

He was very professional & always willing to answer any questions I had about the design.

I would recommend him to anyone looking for something new or fresh for their blog. 

If you have not had a chance, please check out his amazing designs and sweet family at www.adelinesdaddy.com!!

**photos above were done in the Picture Show app from iPhone.**

-

Happy Valentine's Day.

My, oh my.
Yesterday was wonderful!
**I had to work today, so it was nice to pile a lot of fun into one day. ;)

Nathan stopped by in the morning.
I open the door to find flowers & coffee!
Aw. He knows the way to my heart. ;)

We got to chat with my mom and sisters a bit.
I also forced them to take photos outside with me.
I am glad they did. I'm not so sure that they are just yet.
It was very cold.



The afternoon called for lunch and a nap!
By late afternoon, the last bit of snow had fallen.
Always sad because that first day of snowfall is always so beautiful!

After all that, we went to visit with Jordan, Tyler, & the boys for a couple of hours.
It was filled with snow balls, laughter, popcorn, and a fierce game of Phase 10!!


**Disclaimer: If you have not played that card game, then DON'T! It makes you angry when someone is a couple phases ahead of you. I promise. It really will. I'm telling you all this for your own good. You can thank me later. 

Nathan & I then headed to our crappy theater in town to watch 'The Vow'.
You should all know that I did NOT shed any tears.
Well, any "visible" tears.
My eyes stayed watered through most of the movie, though.

PS: I had the one of the WORST shifts in the pharmacy tonight.

I didn't expect to see Nathan at all.

But, being the sweetest guy around, he surprises me with those lovely flowers and coffee (right up there)!

I am one lucky gal. ;) 

Happy Valentine's Day!

No matter how it was spent - with a boyfriend/girlfriend, spouse, friends, siblings, or parents - I hope it was filled with love. 

Oh ... & lots of hugs. ;)